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This article is provided courtesy of Stars and Stripes, which got its start as a newspaper for Union troops during the Civil War, and has been published continuously since 1942 in Europe and 1945 in the Pacific. Stripes reporters have been in the field with American soldiers, sailors and airmen in World War II, Korea, the Cold War, Vietnam, the Gulf War, Bosnia and Kosovo, and are now on assignment in the Middle East.

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Pave Hawks Cleared to Fly after Okinawa Crash

Stars and Stripes|Aug 15, 2013

KADENA AIR BASE, Okinawa – Pave Hawk helicopters will resume flights Friday at Kadena Air Base on Okinawa following a fiery crash last week that claimed the life of an airman, Air Force officials said Wednesday.

The air base’s fleet of HH-60s was given addition inspections and maintenance while grounded for the past week and the Air Force found no potential hazards, Master Sgt. C.T. Kirk, a maintenance crew chief with the 33rd Helicopter Maintenance Unit, told reporters during a press event at Kadena.

The Pave Hawk crash Aug. 5 on Camp Hansen killed Tech. Sgt. Mark Smith, destroyed the aircraft and sent a plume of smoke into the air that could be seen for miles.

The incident underscored widespread concerns on Okinawa about the safety of U.S. military aircraft that routinely fly over densely populated areas of the island.